1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric rotating machine which can be mounted on a vehicle and used as a motor or an alternator.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally, an electric rotating machine mounted on a vehicle to be used as a motor or an alternator includes a rotor and a stator having a stator core disposed facing the rotor and a stator winding wound around the stator core. Each of Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Nos. 2001-204151 and 2000-060051 discloses an electric rotating machine of the segment type in which the stator winding is made up of a plurality of conductor segments including in-slot portions accommodated in slots formed in the stator core and a coil end section exposed from the slots in the axial direction and extending along the circumferential direction.
Each conductor segment is constituted of a pair of straight sections and a turn section connecting one ends of the straight sections and is U-shaped. The insulating films of the straight sections are stripped off at their tips on their open side to form conductor exposed portions. The straight sections of each conductor segment are inserted into two of the slots from one axial end side, the two slots being apart from each other by a predetermined slot pitch. Next, the open end portions of the conductor segment projecting form the slots toward the other axial end side are bent so as to be skewed in the circumferential direction by a predetermined angle. Thereafter, each corresponding two conductor exposed portions are joined by welding or the like so that the conductor segments are electrically connected in series. Finally, the conductor exposed portions and their vicinities are coated with an insulating resin member to complete the stator winding.
Meanwhile, there is a strong demand to reduce the sizes and enhance the performances of electric rotating machines mounted on hybrid vehicles which are becoming widespread. To address such demand, it is necessary to ensure sufficiently high insulating performance of the insulating resin member covering the conductor exposed portions and their vicinities. If the thickness of the insulating resin member is increased for this purpose, the cost of material of the insulating resin member increases.